Public domain in the US, the EU and the UK

The Hunchback of Notre-DameVictor Hugo, 1831

Hugo's 1831 novel is free, with its tragic ending. Disney's happy ending, its singing gargoyles and the 1998 French musical are not.

First published
1831
Author died
1885
Original language
French
Start my adaptationOriginal texts

Copyright status

Copyright ends at different dates in different countries. Here is where this work stands in the three places most readers release in.
WhereStatus
United StatesPublic domain. First published in 1831, before 1931: the 95-year US term for works of that age has run out.
European Union and United KingdomPublic domain since 1 January 1956. Victor Hugo died in 1885, and the term is 70 years after the end of the year of death.
Other countriesMost countries protect a work for 50 to 100 years after its author's death, and some have transition rules. If you release or sell in a specific country, check its law.

Status checked on October 26, 2026 against the sources listed in our legal guide.

In Paris in 1482, the deaf bell-ringer of Notre-Dame, Quasimodo, is raised by the archdeacon Claude Frollo, who becomes obsessed with the dancer Esmeralda. Frollo orders Quasimodo to kidnap her; she is saved by the captain Phoebus, whom she loves. When Frollo stabs Phoebus out of jealousy, Esmeralda is accused of the crime and sentenced to hang. Quasimodo shelters her in the cathedral, but the novel ends in death for almost everyone.

Free to use

  • The 1831 French novel, Notre-Dame de Paris, and its old translations.
  • Quasimodo, Esmeralda, her goat Djali, Frollo, Phoebus, Gringoire and the Court of Miracles.
  • Hugo's long description of the cathedral and of medieval Paris.
  • Any version, including the novel's dark ending.

Watch out for

  • Disney's 1996 film owns its designs, its songs, its gargoyle characters and its changes to the story. So does the 1998 French musical by Plamondon and Cocciante.
  • Recent translations are protected. Check who made one before quoting it, or translate from the French.
  • Recent photos and 3D models of the cathedral, before and after the 2019 fire, can be protected. Generate your own Notre-Dame.
  • AI models lean towards the Disney Quasimodo. Describe Hugo's and check each frame.

The full rules, with the laws and court decisions behind them, are in our guide to adapting public domain works.

An adaptation idea

The bell-ringer's cathedral: Paris in 1482 seen from the towers, by the only man who never leaves them.

Format: A gothic feature, or a six-episode series.

Adapt it in ScreenWeaver

These are the steps as they run in ScreenWeaver today. You read and edit every step, and you start every generation yourself, in the app.

  1. 1Get the French text from Wikisource or Gallica, or an old English translation from Project Gutenberg, and save it as a PDF with a text layer.
  2. 2Attach it to a project and ask for the characters, places and objects. Create the cathedral as a place with its own reference sheet.
  3. 3Write the art direction: medieval Paris, the towers and bells, the Court of Miracles at night. Add a style image of your own.
  4. 4Ask for the scenes, then the shots of each scene.
  5. 5Generate the frames in Storyboard, then the clips in Production.

How a whole book becomes scenes and shots: novel to storyboard.

Original texts

Where to get The Hunchback of Notre-Dame from a legal source

Questions

Is The Hunchback of Notre-Dame public domain?
Yes. Victor Hugo published it in 1831 and died in 1885. It is free in the US, the EU and the UK.
Can I use Disney's gargoyles?
No. The talking gargoyles were created for the 1996 film.
Can I keep the novel's sad ending?
Yes, and it is the safest choice: the ending is Hugo's.

General information, not legal advice. Copyright, trademark and personality rights depend on the country and on the facts of each project. For a commercial release, have a lawyer check your chain of rights.

Other works to adapt

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Import The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, build the cast and the places, write the scenes and cut them into shots. The Screenwriter plan is free.
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